Door edge protector

ABSTRACT

A guard for protecting a door edge from impacts caused by people and equipment. The guard is a cut and formed paperboard tube comprising an elongated, substantially planar spine and two side members extending at right angles from the spine. Two gripping members are integrally connected to the side members. The gripping members have convex interior surfaces that form a friction fit with opposite sides of the door.

BACKGROUND

1. Field of the Invention

This patent relates to a device for protecting building surfaces. Moreparticularly, this patent relates to a device for protecting a door edgethat can be installed prior to construction, renovation and moving, andcan be easily and quickly removed afterwards.

2. Description of the Related Art

During construction, renovation and moving operations, key surfaces in abuilding, especially those in high traffic areas, can be subjected toabuse by workers and equipment moving in and around the building rooms.These surfaces, which include door edges, door frames and wall corneredges (i.e., outwardly projecting wall corners), are costly and timeconsuming to repair, which can often delay the completion of a buildingproject. Protecting these surfaces can avoid these costly repairs,reduce overall building costs and shorten building project time.

While numerous attempts to provide a protective device for door framesare known, applicants are aware of only one United States patentspecifically directed to a door edge protective device. Olton U.S. Pat.No. 3,271,919 describes a door edge protector having inwardly extendingflanges that fit within grooves located on either side of the door.While the Olton device may be suitable for its intended purpose, it isnot intended for temporary use, and cannot be easily installed andremoved.

Thus it is an object of the present invention to provide a means forprotecting building surfaces, particularly door edges, that arevulnerable to abuse by workers and equipment.

Another object of the invention is to provide a door edge protectivedevice that can be easily and quickly installed and removed.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a protective devicefor a door edge that does not require adhesive or other permanentattachment means.

Further and additional objects will appear from the description,accompanying drawings, and appended claims.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a guard for protecting a door edge totemporarily protect the door edge from impacts caused by people andequipment. The guard is a formed and cut paperboard tube comprising anelongated, substantially planar spine or back and two elongated,substantially planar opposing side members extending from the spine atsubstantially right angles thereto, the side members being substantiallyparallel to each other. Two elongated gripping members extend inwardly,toward each other, from the side members. Each gripping member has aconvex, door facing surface that grips the door to hold the guard inplace for as long as the guard is needed. The gripping members arespaced apart a distance less than the door width when the guard is in arelaxed, uninstalled state.

THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a door edge guard according to thepresent invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of the door edge guard of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the door edge guard of FIG. 1 shownprotecting a door edge.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the door edge guard of FIG. 1 shownprotecting a door edge.

FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view of a second embodiment of a door edgeguard according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

While this invention may be embodied in many forms, there is shown inthe drawings and will herein be described in detail one or moreembodiments, with the understanding that this disclosure is to beconsidered an exemplification of the principles of the invention and isnot intended to limit the invention to the illustrated embodiments.

Turning to the drawings, there is shown in FIG. 1 one embodiment of thepresent invention, a guard 10 for protecting a door edge or othersimilarly shaped building surfaces. The guard 10 comprises an elongated,substantially planar back or spine 12 having opposing longitudinal edges13 and two elongated, substantially planar opposing side members 14extending from the edges 13 in a direction substantially at right anglesto the spine 12. Preferably the longitudinal edges 13 are rounded.

Preferably the side members 14 are substantially parallel to each otherwhen the guard is in a relaxed, unstressed position (prior toinstallation) in order to fit snugly against opposite sides of a door20. Alternatively, the side members 14 may be angled inwardly, towardeach other, as shown in FIG. 5.

Two elongated gripping members 16 extend from the ends of the sidemembers 14 distant the spine 12. Each gripping member has a convex,interior (door facing) surface 18 that contacts and grips the door 12 asexplained further below.

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of the door edge guard 10. When theguard 10 is in an unstressed (uninstalled) position, the interiorsurfaces 18 of the gripping members are separated by a distance (D).This distance (D) should be less than the thickness of the door 20 to beprotected so that the door guard 10 can form a friction fit with eitherside of the door near the door edge 22. When the guard 10 is installedover a door edge 22, the gripping members 16 will flex slightly outward,away from each other, to accommodate the thickness of the door 20. Wheninstalled, the gripping members 16 grip either side of the door 20 tohold the guard 10 in place.

FIGS. 3 and 4 are views of the guard 10 shown installed over a door edge22. The guard 10 covers the door edge 22 along its height, andpreferably along that part of its height most likely to be subject toabuse from people and equipment. The guard 10 can be made to any lengthto cover as much of the door edge 22 as desired, and can even be cutcrosswise on site as needed.

The guard 10 may be made wide enough and resilient enough to accommodatevarious door edge thicknesses. The guard 10 may be made from anysuitable material, including plastic, but preferably is made from paperor, more specifically, layers of paperboard laminated together.

The guard 10 may be manufactured by winding paperboard into a hollowtube, making a single elongated cut along the tube's length, and formingthe cut tube into the desired shape.

It is understood that the embodiments of the invention described aboveare only particular examples which serve to illustrate the principles ofthe invention. Modifications and alternative embodiments of theinvention are contemplated which do not depart from the scope of theinvention as defined by the foregoing teachings and appended claims. Itis intended that the claims cover all such modifications and alternativeembodiments that fall within their scope.

1. A paperboard guard for protecting the edge of a door, the guardcomprising: an elongated spine having opposing longitudinal edges; twoelongated, substantially planar opposing side members extending from thelongitudinal edges; and two gripping members extending from the sidemembers, each gripping member having a convex, interior surface capableof contacting and gripping the door when the guard is installed.
 2. Theguard of claim 1 wherein the spine is substantially planar.
 3. The guardof claim 2 wherein the side members are substantially planar.
 4. Theguard of claim 3 wherein the side members extend from the longitudinaledges in a direction substantially at right angles to the spine, theside members being substantially parallel to each other.
 5. The guard ofclaim 3 wherein the side members extend from the longitudinal edges inan inward direction toward each other, each side member defining anacute included angle with the spine.
 6. The guard of claim 3 wherein thelongitudinal edges are rounded.
 7. The guard of claim 1 wherein theguard is formed a plurality of layers of paperboard laminated together.8. A guard for protecting the edge of a door, the guard manufactured by:winding paperboard into a hollow longitudinal tube having a length,making a longitudinal cut along the length of the tube; and forming thetube into the desired shape.